Citing the coroner's office, the newspaper reported that Smith died accidentally on January 11 due to asphyxia and chest compression.

The Review-Journal reported that the coroner's office considered the presence of methamphetamine and MDMA to be 'significant factors.'

According to MyNews3, Smith got snarled in a North Las Vegas palm tree - between 25 and 30 feet above the ground - on January 11.

The television station reported 'Firefighter crews were not able to see the patient in the tree because of the palm fronds that were hanging down, completely covering him.'

'Once crews were able to use a ladder truck to reach the victim, they had to cut the palm fronds from around him in order to be able to attempt a high angle rescue. It took crews 15 minutes to rescue the middle aged adult male from the tree and transport him to the hospital, according to a North Las Vegas Fire Department news release.'

Witness and neighbor Jay Atkins told 8NewsNow last month 'I just saw leaves and brush coming down and then I noticed a guy was up there cutting. And then, they had the street blocked off.'

Atkins also told the television station 'You would think you wouldn't be up there in the rain.'

Neighbor Pat Burgess also spoke to 8NewsNow at the time and said of the tree 'That's been growing like that for at least a couple of years.'

An obituary for Smith says he has a widow and that 'Dan enjoyed collecting artifacts and rocks, fishing and working on cars. If anything broke down, eh [sic] could fix it.'

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that a 49-year-old man suffocated to death while trimming a palm tree on December 22 in North Las Vegas.